– THE RITZ, MANCHESTER – For some reason, now seems the right time to catch The Dandy Warhols live. Since being a fan of theirs when they were arguably at their peak, around the turn of the century, they have always remained in my thoughts largely due to the The Brian Jonestown Massacre. Ironically, The Dandy’s […]

– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER – The Hipshakes are like those kids you see hanging around the hallway in High School at the beginning of a John Hughes movie. They don’t figure in the main plot, but they’re far more interesting. They ain’t nerds and they aren’t jocks, they are the music obsessive vinyl collectors […]

Can an album sound retro, contemporary and futuristic at the same time? Y Dydd Olaf certainly succeeds in doing so. This is a beautiful album of contrasts from start to finish, and is one that demands close attention. As a non-Welsh (or Cornish) speaker (the featured languages for Y Dydd Olaf), it would be easy […]

– THE DEAF INSTITUTE, MANCHESTER – “Holy shit, I’m in Manchester!” exclaims Kawehi as she takes to the stage in front of an initially quiet crowd at The Deaf Institute. The tiny American, who hails from Hawaii but is now based in Kansas, already seems quite comfortable addressing the room and gets a rowdy cheer […]

– THE EAGLE INN, MANCHESTER – C Duncan’s career has been transformed in the past few weeks. He released his debut album Architect and has had his lead single ‘Garden’ played a number of times on BBC6Music – and it’s probably playing now. This increased exposure, explains why there are just six tickets left on […]

– THE RITZ, MANCHESTER – The Sonics wrote, arguably, four of the greatest 60’s garage punk songs ever, Cinderella, Psycho, Strichnine and The Witch. They wrote and covered a bunch of other fantastic songs during their short recording career in the mid-sixties and the influence of those songs and that band cannot be overstated. The […]

– BAND ON THE WALL, MANCHESTER – After a wonderful intro from Positive Force, bandleader Femi Kuti tells the audience that he is going to take us on a tour of afrobeat (or a crash course for the uninitiated) from the early music of his father Fela Kuti, through the present and into the future. […]

– THE RUBY LOUNGE, MANCHESTER – Brian Jonestown Massacre’s Anton Newcombe and London-based Canadian songwriter Tess Parks released a collaborative album I Declare Nothing earlier this month and have coupled the release with some live dates. Out on Newcombe’s own label, A Recordings, it has been causing rather a stir in the psychedelic minded community. […]

– THE CASTLE HOTEL, MANCHESTER – As I’m walking towards The Castle, I blame the atmospheric pressure and this thick humidity for feeling so worn out, but as soon as I enter the tiny room for gigs of this cosy pub all the (environ)mental haze goes away at a stroke. “From the bowels of Scotland”, Thee […]

– BAND ON THE WALL, MANCHESTER – “Stay alive!” Astonishing bass (and showman) Norman Watt-Roy gives us a hint to understand the enduring success of this legendary band, The Blockheads. This one and only funky band have been alive and kicking since 1977, and they have honourably survived several split ups, deaths and some other twists […]